Mercury Insurance Employees Say ‘Thank You’ To Troops

Members of the military and employees from Mercury Insurance gathered on September 7 at Mercury’s office in Camarillo, California for the eighth consecutive year to assemble care packages for U.S. armed forces stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait and Egypt.

Mercury’s staff has arranged these “packing parties” to collect and ship gifts to troops who are stationed overseas, far from their families. Each package contains items requested by active-duty soldiers, including toiletries, wool socks, snacks, holiday decorations, playing cards, games and comfort food. Volunteers assembled 186 care packages during the event this year.

Watch the packing party in a time-lapse video.

“These packing parties are really important to do and a great way to show the enthusiasm of Mercury employees when it comes to our support of the military,” said Stephanie Behnke, a Mercury claims business solutions and a U.S. Army veteran. “I’ve been on the other end of receiving a package as well as stuffing them, and it really picked up my spirits.”

The employee-driven initiative was co-founded by Camarillo employees Melyssa Jones and Monica Nungaray. Nungaray’s oldest son served with the Marine Corps in Afghanistan and Iraq, and her youngest son also served in the Marines. “Seeing how employees from across the company have embraced this cause is inspiring,” said Nungaray. “Some have traveled more than 100 miles today to be here. It’s the least we could do to show soldiers that we care about them and appreciate their sacrifices.”